chris_b

I didn't see, "never forget to buy your round."

Exactly this. I've done deps when I didn't know what was coming next and been told by band members, "I was following you"!! Looking like you know what's happening seems to fool more people than you'd expect. After the first lockdown I started rehearsing with 3 others to put on a tribute show. Me and the drummer turned up knowing the songs and arrangements. . . . and had to spend the next 4 rehearsals teaching the other 2 (including the band leader) what they should already know. Why am I still getting involved in these situations?!

My first visit to a Maccari's was to their Wembley shop in the mid 60's. I encountered the older generation of Maccari but their intrusive "hard sell" methods didn't sit well with me back then. I just wanted to look around but got pressure and comments instead. I never went back.

+1 You've got to hit the ground running.

Lift your fingers off the strings, don't drag them.

Might be wind!

Bass is sounding good.

Both for me. I love holding and playing my basses but they are a means to an end, because I love playing with other musicians, more.

The neck on my Sadowsky is just a single piece of maple. It hasn't moved in the 4 years I've been playing it. Then again none of my basses have required any work on the neck since my Fender Precision needed a truss rod tweak in 1970.

For lockdown home playing I’m using my most powerful amp (800 watt Thunderfunk) through a BF One10 and my passive PJ5. This is the best low volume combination I’ve got. Sounds very good at no volume at all.

It’s a good sign when you find an amp that gets the sound you want with very little EQ fiddling.

Fantastic drumming. Damon Sawyer engineered several albums I did when he was in the Reading area.

I've got this. My Sadowsky Metro has a feel and a sound that just works for me. It's a little on the heavy side so I've tried several other Metros and even an NYC and none of them felt or sounded as good.

I agree. Many things that can lose you the gig. It's a fickle business. PS but why was Will Lee there in the first place?

I play 2 or 3 hours a day, 2 or 3 times a week. After 11 months, I should be a slap expert, but still haven't managed to get all the way through the first slap video I picked. I've kept my interest going by working on songs, ie choosing an artist and playing my way through their albums. First was Stevie Wonder, then Joni Mitchell, Bobby Bland, Kylie Minogue and others. Most recently I've gone through 15 of John Hiatt's 20 albums. Hiatt was easy to play but an emphasis on melodic playing rather than technique gave it it's own challenges. Next on the to-do list is Robben Ford, followed by Chic, some Motown and probably Daryl's House.

The point is, most bass players work within a narrow band of tone. Does the 80/20 rule fit here? It probably does, so 80% of the bass players (pro and semi-pro) are using 20% of the available tone. The differences in tone between these players is small but most are differentiated by what they play, not how they sound. Players like Chris Squire and JJ Burnell are in the 20%. They are way outside of the mainstream of bass players tones. Maybe that is what makes them stand out, but interestingly, their sound is not as widely copied as their popularity would suggest. There are bass players all over the world who got the gig because they were a mate, but I know of no bass players who get gigs just because they sound good. Good players get gigs, no matter how they sound, because of what and how they play.

I'd have preferred the dots to be scrolling across the screen rather than jumping from one side to the other. Made it pretty much unreadable for me.

The Gallery is a great place for a visit. I haven't bought much/enough there, but always get a "long lost friend" greeting from Martin. I still don't know if that is for me or whether he does that with everyone.

What's wrong with the Hosco? Any BBOT is going to look pretty similar.

Forget the concept of "The One"! Stop being so picky and focus on being a better player. I'm not saying we shouldn't buy better basses, but obsessing over a mythical creature is a waste of energy. As per the Marcus Miller post, love the "one" you're with.

Sessions exist, but not in the way they did in the past. I know a local online drummer who, a few years ago, was on a project with Chuck Rainey. Online is where the work is these days. I just lost a friends album due to the lockdown, and because I don’t do remote recording.

I bought my Bergs from the barn as well.

Absolutely. We have lost a few in recent years, but we need as many businesses selling quality bass gear as we can get.

All my purchases from Bass Direct were when Mark ran the place on his own. I used to drop in if I was driving past on the way to a gig. I have nothing but good experiences of that time. I had one negative experience after he employed a couple of guys to work in the shop. IMO they were the stereotypical "I'm cool, I work in a music shop" guys, that I'd seen in the West End shops from the 60's onwards. I didn't warm to them or their approach/attitude. I have no inside knowledge here, but seems that reports of negative experiences have stemmed from that time.